The Mystery of Irish Windows: Christ Church Gorey and Kilgariffe

In  September 2025 Marianne Giles, a good friend of Erika, kindly visited  the Library of Virginia Archive. There is a Glasby Window at St Mark Church, Log 145. From earlier research we knew there were documents relating to the Window in the Archive.

In a “marketing document “ [1] discovered by Marianne we saw several pieces of work which were new for us. This document was hard to read but Erika found 2 copies of the same document in the Donald Green archive. We know that it must refer to Glasby work before 1929 – the date of the St Mark Window – and could be even earlier if it was sent as an early marketing document.

 In the “Virginia” document there is mention of two Works in Ireland at Gorey and Kilgarriff.

GOREY

The entry for Gorey states:

GOREY.- THE DONOR. “I think the colourings are beautiful”.

 This is at Christ Church, Gorey [Log NW 35] is an opus sectile mosaic panel. Angels with Scrolls

It had been wrongly ascribed to Ethel Rhind in the Gazetteer of Irish Stained Glass.

 Donald Green successfully proved that it was the work of Glasby.  It is of the same design as work found at Milford Haven [Log 230], Rusholme [Logs NW 45 & 46] and Swansea [Log 268] .

Green states that :

“In January 1994 I was able to send Canon Dr Philip Kowles, Rector of Gorey, a photograph of the Glasby panel in Holy Trinity, Rusholme, Manchester, and he was able to tell me that the design at Gorey (GSZHNA) is identical to that at Rusholme.”

Green  made a research visit to Ireland and there is a useful map of Morris Windows in Ireland and the Windows at Gorey and Kilgarriff.

Log 45: Rusholme, Manchester

Log 230: Milford Haven

KILGARRIFF

The work at Kilgarriff is still a mystery. In the Richmond document The Reverend W. O. Harvey describes it as:

 “It is a beautiful piece of work, and a worthy adornment to our church.”

In September 2025 we contacted the current vicar of Kilgarriff, the Rev. Kingsley Sutton, but he replied that he had no knowledge of the Windows in the church. Further internet searches did not find any mention of a Window at Kilgarriffe Church in Clonakilty. 

Donald Green did not find any stained glass by Glasby in the Church.[2] Green had written to the Honorary Secretary to the Church or Ireland who established that there were no stained-glass Windows or wall tablets in the church at Templeomanus (which had been demolished around 1964).

The second Kilgarriffe church at Clonakilty has two stained glass Windows by Watson of Youghal. Co. Cork. There are no wall tablets.

In a letter Green states:

“You were able to tell me in 1993 that you had carried out a survey of Kilgariffe Church in Clonakilty in October 1992 and had found only “two very dull windows by Watsons of Youghal”.

Thus Green laments that “we are unlikely to discover what it was that The Reverend W O Harvey so admired.”

Research Carried Out:

McCarthy, Dr Bernadette (2017). "The Churches of Clonakilty: An Architectural Discussion" (PDF). Dúchas: Clonakilty Heritage. 2: 211–249. Archived from the original (PDF) . Retrieved 3 November 2021.

 Some of the windows display fine stained glass, the scenes of which have been identified by Dr David Lawrence.13 Three of the windows date to 1923 and were produced by the studio of Watson & Co., Youghal. These depict Christas Light of the World, the Parable of the Good Samaritan and the Parableof the Prodigal Son. Another window dating to 1935 depicts the Parable of the Talents (Fig. 14); it was produced by Mayer & Co., Munich, who also produced stained-glass windows for the Catholic church in Clonakilty.

Lawrence, D. ‘Gloine—stained glass in the Church of Ireland’. Online database at: http://www.gloine.ie/.

This is  how the Windows are attributed online:

Studio: Mayer & Co., Munich (attrib), Date , 1935 (mem), Parable of the Talents;

Studio: Watson & Co., Youghal (sgn); Date, 1923 (mem); Parable of the Prodigal Son -left; Christ as Light of the World - centre; Parable of the Good Samaritan; right

 Window - W01 - Kilgariffe - Gloine - Stained glass in the Church of Ireland

     Window - W03 - Kilgariffe - Gloine - Stained glass in the Church of Ireland

The Windows are very similar to William Glasby's work he designed later for Peachtree Cathedral in the US. In 1923 he was working independently but also for William Morris and Co.

© Professor Erika Szyszczak, February 2026.

[1]                 We discovered 2 similar copies of the document in the Donald Green archive on 27 January 2026. Like us, Donald Green seems surprised by the inclusion of many new Windows which Glasby says he has produced. Subsequently we have discovered that some of these Windows re Windows that Glasby painted for Morris & Co. Morris & Co produced Windows in Ireland at :

[2]                 Green Archive: GO48.